30 Days of Barduil
by Ant-Carrying-A-Rubber-Tree
Summary: A series of drabbles all involving Bard and Thranduil. Based on the movies.
1. Bard's Coronation

Bard thought he looked nervous in the mirror as he patted down and straightened up his jacket. The clothes he was wearing seemed too rich, too thick, too lavish for a simple bargeman. He shook his head.

He was no longer a simple bargeman.

It had been three years since Smaug had destroyed Laketown, and the people now lived in Dale.

Bard was going to become the first King of Dale in 174 years.

The people had continued to support him until this point and trusted him to lead them out of hunger and homelessness. How was he supposed to live up to that for the rest of his life? He could feel his knees begin to shake.

The feel of large hands on his shoulders calmed him, and when Bard looked over his shoulder to see Thranduil's face, his smile softened into something more content.

Thranduil's lips quirked in a way Bard had learned meant he was happy. "You," he said, squeezing Bard's shoulders, "you are ready. The Men of Dale believe in you. Should you not do the same?"

"What? Believe in myself?" Bard said wryly.

"No," Thranduil replied, "believe in them."

Bard did a double take. He turned his head to look back in the mirror and locked eyes with Thranduil.

Thranduil gave a true, if small, smile when he saw the surprise on Bard's face. "You have helped your people through hard times. You saved them from Smaug and did not abandon them afterwards to fend for themselves. You have led them in the correct direction so far. Have you decided that you cannot be the leader they need, although they have evidence to the contrary?" he said.

Bard stood for a moment, thinking.

He grinned. "Why are you always right?" he said with a small laugh.

"I have been a king for nearly three thousand years. You will find my advice is usually quite sound," Thranduil said. "Are you ready to be crowned?"

"Only if you're with me every step of the way.

* * *

**Ah, yes, the trash pit that is barduil. This is my first work with them, so please tell me if anything is dangerously OOC.**

**Also, I may have calculated Thranduil's reign - if he became king the same year his father died (which I'm assuming is how it works for elves), he would have been king of Mirkwood for 2,951 years by the time Bard was crowned.**

**Good god, that is one old elf.**

**but that also means Bard can't spend Thranduil's 3,000th anniversary with him in TA 2993 because he dies in TA 2977.**


	2. Thranduil and the Bardlings

**These are the ages I'm working with:**  
**Sigrid - 18**  
**Bain - 15 **  
**Tilda - 12**

**Also, canonically, Bard is 43 when he kills Smaug, so I figured these ages were reasonable, especially if you go with the common headcanon that his wife died in childbirth. Bard seems to be (at least in the movie) over her death in the way that he can talk about it a little, but it's not a subject that he likes to dwell on or think about (and I mean, who would?).**

* * *

Bard happened to think that the best part of his day was putting his children to bed.

Not that he got tired of them or wanted them to go away, but he had always liked it because it was something he could always do with them.

He enjoyed tucking them in, even if Bain and Sigrid said they were too old for such things. Now Tilda was getting to the age where she would whine "Daaaa," and get embarrassed when he kissed her on the head, but Bard knew they didn't truly mind. One night, when he had come home late, Bain had admitted that he had a hard time falling asleep without it.

As of late, however, it had become more and more difficult to see them before they went to bed. Meetings with Dáin Ironfoot and long conferences about supplies in Dale took up most of his time, and sometimes he felt too exhausted to even get himself into bed, let alone his children.

Today was a welcome exception.

Bard had become good friends with Thranduil in the time since Smaug, and he figured now was as good a time to have him meet his children officially. They had met him before, in passing, during the Battle of the Five Armies, but he was almost positive Thranduil would not be able to recognize them if he saw them.

Bard wanted to involve Thranduil in "family" events - even if they were as mundane as bedtime.

Bard was a bit nervous. He knew Tilda and Bain would be taken by Thranduil almost immediately. Tilda would love him merely because he was an elf and had pretty hair, and Bain would be interested in his skill with archery. Sigrid might take longer, but Bard knew she would warm up to him. No, Bard was more worried about Thranduil.

Thranduil didn't see to be the kind of person who liked children. After seeing him speak with his own son in such a cold, distant manner, Bard had no idea how Thranduil would interact with someone else's children.

At least he had seemed eager to meet Sigrid, Bain, and Tilda. That had to count for something, right? That had to mean Thranduil would try with them, Bard tried to reassure himself.

And Thranduil had to like his children. If he didn't, how could Bard even consider trying to court him?


End file.
